December 7, 2023 THE DIFFERENCE MAKER
Galatians 5:22-26 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fruitfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirt. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.”
In the first part of this chapter, Paul describes what is like to live according to then flesh; in the verses above, He describes what it like to live by the Spirit. As you read this chapter, you see the great contrast of living by the Spirit and living by the flesh. This passage above is one of those we must ‘wrestle’ with if we are to understand what these verses are saying. These verses challenge us at the core. The profound statement is “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh.’ I am quick to say that I cannot fully understand or explain this statement. I do know that a believer can live according to the flesh; there are many scriptures admonishing believers not to live according to the fleas but to live according to the Spirit. I think there is a major spiritual ‘fork in the road’ when we come to on our spiritual journey; and it is the Spirit who leads us to this point. It sounds so simple, yet it is so profound and so life changing; what makes all the difference, what changes everything is our crucifying the flesh. (The flesh refers to that part of us that wants to live according to our own desires apart from God.) Man thinks that he is wise enough to direct his own life-yet, he cannot find what he seeks for. The verses above talks about those ‘who belong to Christ Jesus.’ After all said and done, we cannot escape the fact that we cannot live according to the Spirit and live the life God has for us until we have crucified the flesh; and the Holy Spirit empowers us to just that. This is not necessarily something we do once one in a life time. There is a ‘both and;’ there should be a point when we realize that our flesh opposes God, and because of that, we consciously die to our self. As we walk with the Lord, it is also a continual choosing of dying to the flesh and living by the Spirit. Much could be said on this subject, but the key truth is that we are called to die to ourselves and to yield our selves to the Spirit. Life lived according to the flesh does not satisfy; but walking by the Spirit fills the deepest longings of our soul. The fruit that the Spirit produces in us is always good fruit.
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Blessings, Buddy
Galatians 5:22-26 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fruitfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirt. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.”
In the first part of this chapter, Paul describes what is like to live according to then flesh; in the verses above, He describes what it like to live by the Spirit. As you read this chapter, you see the great contrast of living by the Spirit and living by the flesh. This passage above is one of those we must ‘wrestle’ with if we are to understand what these verses are saying. These verses challenge us at the core. The profound statement is “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh.’ I am quick to say that I cannot fully understand or explain this statement. I do know that a believer can live according to the flesh; there are many scriptures admonishing believers not to live according to the fleas but to live according to the Spirit. I think there is a major spiritual ‘fork in the road’ when we come to on our spiritual journey; and it is the Spirit who leads us to this point. It sounds so simple, yet it is so profound and so life changing; what makes all the difference, what changes everything is our crucifying the flesh. (The flesh refers to that part of us that wants to live according to our own desires apart from God.) Man thinks that he is wise enough to direct his own life-yet, he cannot find what he seeks for. The verses above talks about those ‘who belong to Christ Jesus.’ After all said and done, we cannot escape the fact that we cannot live according to the Spirit and live the life God has for us until we have crucified the flesh; and the Holy Spirit empowers us to just that. This is not necessarily something we do once one in a life time. There is a ‘both and;’ there should be a point when we realize that our flesh opposes God, and because of that, we consciously die to our self. As we walk with the Lord, it is also a continual choosing of dying to the flesh and living by the Spirit. Much could be said on this subject, but the key truth is that we are called to die to ourselves and to yield our selves to the Spirit. Life lived according to the flesh does not satisfy; but walking by the Spirit fills the deepest longings of our soul. The fruit that the Spirit produces in us is always good fruit.
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Blessings, Buddy
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